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Monday, October 12, 2015

Wolf from the Past by N.J. Walters

Playing dead is easy. Living is hard.

Sylvie LaForge Dubois knew coming back from the dead wouldn’t be easy, but
facing her brother and his friends is harder than she imagined. The way Gator
Rollins watches her every move makes her decidedly uneasy and excited.

After surviving a forced mating to the abusive Andre Dubois, having a rugged,
dangerous werewolf like Gator sniffing around her is scary and thrilling at the
same time. She never imagined she’d want another man, but her bone-deep
attraction to Gator is too strong to fight.

Gator never got a chance to tell Sylvie he loved her before she was mated with
another and, well, died. Now that she’s back, there’s nothing he won’t do to
protect her.

Once word gets out, Sylvie’s former pack will be coming for her. No one leaves
the Louisiana pack, especially not a female werewolf. But Gator’s determined
that this time he won’t let anyone or anything get between him and Sylvie, even
if she can’t decide if his touch makes her want to jump his bones…or run for
the hills.

Warning: If you believe in second chances, this story will rock your soul,
make you swoon, and bring tears to your eyes. Don’t say we didn’t warn you.

Angela – ☆☆☆☆☆
How in the world did I miss that N.J. Walters had started another shifter
series? As a huge fan of her Legacy and Tapestries series, I jumped at the
opportunity to review Wolf from the Past
with very little hesitation. I suspected there would be a bit of back story I
was missing out on, but my experience with the author’s writing style made me
comfortable enough that I assumed she would fill me in on what I needed to know
for this installment. And she did.

Keeping in mind that I have not read the previous books, I fell in love with
every member of the Salvation Pack. While Wolf
from the Past focuses on Gator Rollins and Sylvie LaForge Dubois, their
story cannot be told without involving the other members of the Salvation Pack,
especially her brother Armand. Several years ago, Sylvie’s mate Andre attempted
to kill her after she witnessed him beat his human mistress to death. As this
occurred after Sylvie had suffered years of abuse at Andre’s hand, she took
advantage of the situation and fled, leaving all to believe that her mate had
killed her. I’m not sure what shocked me more – that her mate’s murder of her
went unpunished or that she was able to hide out in large cities, while suppressing
her wolf for years. When she learns of her mate’s death and that her brother
and some of their former pack members had broken away from her uncle’s pack,
she makes the trek across the country to see him in hopes that she can start
her relationship anew with him. She finds that not only is her brother relieved
to learn that she is alive, but others in the pack are as well – particularly
Gator, the one man who may have grieved her death more than her brother.
Unbeknownst to anyone, Gator recognized years ago that Sylvie was his true mate
and knew that her father would never allow her to mate with him, preferring to
use Sylvie to secure his power within the pack. Oh yeah, Sylvie’s father was a
real piece of work! While Gator makes her feel safe, Sylvie isn’t sure that she
can withstand another mating and being tied to a man again, no matter how he
makes her feel. Needless to say, Gator has his work cut out for him.

I really enjoyed watching Sylvie come into her own. While events unfold over a
short amount of time, we spend so much of that time with Sylvie that the story
doesn’t feel rushed. The author adds touches of authenticity to the horrific
abuse that Sylvie suffered for years throughout the story. Her inability to be
hugged by her brother upon her arrival was heartbreaking and while she was able
to hug him (and Gator) fully by the end of the book, she was still unable to
endure such contact from the other males of the pack. Intellectually she knew
they would not hurt her, but her years of abuse made her reactions instinctive.
Fortunately the others understood this and were more than willing to
accommodate her, even if we do see signs at the very end of the book that they
will continue to work with her to overcome the ingrained reaction. Many of the
other signs of her abuse are physical and their exposure gives Gator the
openings he needs to show Sylvie what a true mating is meant to be like. He
never once belittles her or shames her for her scars, quite the opposite
actually as he sees her scars as badges of survival. I loved that both Sylvie
and Gator had harbored feelings for the other in their youth, yet neither said
anything because they knew that Sylvie’s father would make things worse than
they already were. The chemistry between Sylvie and Gator is intense, yet
because of his love and concern for her, their sex scenes are both steamy and
tender – seriously swoon worthy. The moment when Gator proves that no one will
harm Sylvie is awesome and I kind of feel sorry for the next person who attempts
to harm Sadie (not really though). The Wolf
from the Past was an excellent read and I look forward to backtracking to
read the previous books in the series.

Once upon a time N.J. had the idea that she would like to quit her job at the
bookstore, sell everything she owned, leave her hometown, and write romance
novels in a place where no one knew her. And she did. Two years later, she went
back to the bookstore and her hometown and settled in for another seven years.

One day she gave notice at her job on a Friday morning. On Sunday afternoon,
she received a tentative acceptance for her first erotic romance novel and life
would never be the same. N.J. has always been a voracious reader, and now she
spends her days writing novels of her own. Vampires, werewolves, dragons,
time-travelers, seductive handymen, and next-door neighbors with smoldering
good looks—all vie for her attention. It’s a tough life, but someone’s got to
live it.

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